


Childhood Sweethearts ( A Nero X Reader In The Myth of Melanion And Atalanta )

by TheDyingMoon



Series: Myths Of Love - A Devil May Cry And Mythology Valentine Crossover [1]
Category: Devil May Cry
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, Love, Romance, School, University
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:33:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22617946
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDyingMoon/pseuds/TheDyingMoon
Summary: ~ You were called as the "Unbeatable Atalanta of The Red Grave Muckspouts", the fastest woman in the Red Grave University. No suitor has ever beaten you in a race. However, you want only one man to beat you, and that is,...
Relationships: Nero (Devil May Cry)/Reader
Series: Myths Of Love - A Devil May Cry And Mythology Valentine Crossover [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1627267
Kudos: 32





	Childhood Sweethearts ( A Nero X Reader In The Myth of Melanion And Atalanta )

"Are you sure this would work?"

"Positive, and at a hundred percent!"

"You gotta be right about that. Look at them! Look at _her_!"

Nico glanced around her and noticed all of your friends cheering for you. She, then, looked at you and noticed how confident you were. And not even a hint of panic or nervousness!

And how could they blame you? No man has ever beaten you in a race. _Ever_.

And what started all of this?

It all started way back in middle school. You could still remember this boy named Nero Sparda coming to Red Grave as an exchange student from Fortuna and how he turned your quiet and peaceful life upside down. You see, he has been your biggest crush since that day he protected you from those bullies, those mean girls who did nothing but make themselves pretty while the rest of the class struggled to pass the exams. He even gave them a stern warning that, if they bothered you again, he would call his Demon father and uncle to throw them out of Red Grave and scare the living shit out of them. Of course, none of them believed this tale by young Nero. He was, in fact, considered a weirdo by almost everyone ( except you, that is ) for always spouting nonsense regarding his so – called demonic family. But then, one day, his father and uncle did come to school for the annual Sports Festival, and, to make the frightening story short and sweet, nobody dared to bother you again.

You and Nero were good friends since then. You might even say you were childhood sweethearts. You helped each other with studies, and you even shared lunch ( Nero loved your mother's home - cooked meals so much because he never really knew his own mom, and no one bothered to cook for him because his father and uncle would just order food for him ). He visited you often, and you did it for him, as well ( he lived in his uncle's very dirty shop with a huge neon sign outside the door that says **_Devil May Cry_** on it ).

For a while, your life was perfect. You liked Nero, and he liked you, too.

But, then, one day, he told you, in a very heartbreaking voice, that he had to go back to Fortuna to take care of some things. He didn't even tell you when he'll be back.

And so, just like that, he, along with his uncle and father who always bickered, left.

And that was five years ago.

Now, you were about to graduate from college. At first, you and Nero exchanged letters and emails, until it all stopped a year ago, and you didn't even know why. You tried to reach him, to contact him but, for some reason, you can't.

Was he ghosting on you? Did he forget about you?

All these things tugged at the back of your mind, telling you to forget about your childhood sweetheart.

However, you stood firm in your belief that, someday, you two will see each other once more.

And so, you tried to keep up with things, to stay positive and healthy, and to always succeed in everything, be it in life or in academics. During those painful years of his absence, you grew as a strong, beautiful, and intelligent woman, and soon, suitors came knocking at your door, one by one, to win your affections.

Of course, you didn't entertain these men ( and women ), and tried to ignore them. But, it came to a point where the overwhelming attention was no longer bearable.

You remained loyal to Nero despite everything, so you came up with a plan to outsmart these suitors. You thought of the thing you could do the best: running.

It all started as a joke. One day, you just challenged a very insistent man to a race and told him that if he win against you, you would be his. Of course, being the gullible person that he was, he accepted the challenge, and lost.

From that point onward, you were called as the **_Atalanta of The Red Grave Muckspouts_** : the fastest lady in the university. By this, you were able to dodge suitor after annoying suitor, and honestly? You were so proud of your achievement ( though it angered you most of the time because some people just wanted to challenge you for the sake of beating you, and, of course, they lost, as well ).

Despite all that, you still wanted someone to win against you,...

... and that was none other than Nero, himself.

And now, as you looked at your one hundred or so suitors at the university field, ready to challenge and beat you, you couldn't help but sigh in sorrow. Your friends organized this one - of - a - kind _event_ for you as a joke and a sort of farewell party after your graduation, and you allowed it. They said it was to give anyone a chance to take you out on a date. And what could go wrong, anyway? Your friends knew that you would come out victorious, after all.

And so, as Nico surveyed the crowd of suitors, she couldn't help but smile confidently.

Her friend _would_ win. Her invention was perfect for this. He _will_ win.

"I better win this race, Nico!" Her friend told her for the fourth time that day.

"Don't crap yerself! Ye'll win fer sure!" The woman, who was getting annoyed of her nervous and _lovesick_ friend, answered. She, then, pushed the guy towards the crowd as one of your classmates started announcing the rules.

"What the f - ?!" The guy, whose face was covered with a hoodie, almost swore at Nico's callousness.

"Remember what I taught ya!" The woman cheered as she took out her phone to film the race.

"Yeah, yeah! I'll try not to mess up." The guy mumbled under his breath as he pulled his hoodie lower. He, then, raised his right arm, rolled up his sleeves, and removed the glove from his hand, revealing something that was curiously strange and metallic. "I'm counting on you, **_Melanion_**."

"The rules are simple." The girl behind the podium at the makeshift stage announced. "You have to run three laps around the University perimeter. You will be given a ten second - head start as a handicap for (Y/N). The first person who grabs the blue ribbon here would win a one - of - a - kind date with our darling School Atalanta, (Y/N), herself!"

The crowd cheered and hollered. While these people around him were chatting excitedly, feeling confident that they would win against you, the man with the metallic arm, on the other hand, has his sight set on his goal: the blue ribbon tied to the statue of the Red Grave Muckspout Griffon near the stage. He would execute his plan, try to outrun you, and grab that - 

He was brought back to reality from his own musings as the sound of a horn resounded all over the place, marking the start of the race. It really was a nasty sight, these arrogant men and women trying to outrun each other, some by sheer determination, which was quite admirable, and some by cheating, which was totally unacceptable. Despite the ugly scene that he's witnessing right before his very own eyes, the fire of determination that was burning brightly in his bursting chest only burned brighter and hotter, giving him enough motivation to go up against you.

And after the ten second - head start, he saw you finally make your move.

And he followed right after,...

They honestly thought that they would win against you but, when they finally realized that you were catching up to them like some kind of a predator, they couldn't help but panic, making them lose their concentration. You easily overtook all of them as you dodged some nasty arms that tried to stop you, jumped over the feet that tried to trip you, and avoided all the suspicious things that were thrown at you.

_Just, how hopeless these people were?!_

And the moment you turned around the corner, you became unstoppable. Gaining even more speed without so much as a depletion of stamina, thanks to many years of practice with Nero and his quirky uncles, you were able to make the first lap about twenty to thirty seconds earlier than your so - called suitors. It even came to a point where you could no longer see their sorry faces.

However, things were about to take a surprising turn the moment you reached that same corner,...

"What - ?" You mumbled in confusion as you caught sight of a whining puppy not far from the tallest tree in the school grounds. And what's even more, you noticed that it was in pain - one of its little paws was stuck underneath the trash can! It was crying in pain!

Who would do such a cruel thing?!

You sharply turned and went to rescue the puppy, effortlessly lifting the metal can to free the poor thing.

"Come on, little pup! You're saved now,..." You bent to pick up the gentle animal but, when you tried to touch it,...

... it mysteriously vanished!

"WHAT IN THE WORLD?!" You breathed in disbelief, setting your eyes back to the road just in time to see a hooded man running past you. "WHAT,... THE FUCK?!"

_Just as planned_ , the man thought as he smiled and ran away from you. _The fun is just getting started._

"No, no, no, no, no!" You mumbled, trying to catch up to the mysterious guy. You were about to run past him when a drunk man suddenly appeared out of nowhere. You noticed that he was moving sluggishly, positively blocking the way. "HEY, GET OUT OF THE WAY!" You called but, it seemed that he couldn't hear you.

You clicked your tongue in utter annoyance. _There's no other way, I must -_

You were about to avoid him when he turned to face you and drew his head back, a nasty sound already forming deep in his throat.

He was about to throw up in your face!

"AHH!" You screamed as you took cover, fully prepared for what's to come,...

... but, the puke didn't even touch your skin! In fact, when you opened your eyes, the man was gone and nowhere to be found -

**JUST LIKE THAT POOR PUPPY!**

And as your mind went about producing multitudes of explanations for what was happening, the hooded man was able to outrun you, yet again! He's most definitely winning now!

But, you can't allow this!

This man,...

You knew he was the reason behind this strange phenomenon. And you have no idea how he was pulling this hat trick off!

_What kind of power is this?!_ You hysterically questioned in your own head as you turned around the corner for the last lap,...

... and found hundreds upon hundreds of banana peels on the ground!

It must be him! He's doing all of this!

"Oh, no, you don't!" You screamed as you started to run past them, thinking that, like the puppy and the drunk man, they were only illusions.

And you were right! The banana peels were, indeed, only illusions!

"You can't fool me this time! You - !" Your words were cut off as you accidentally slipped, shamefully plummeting to the ground face first. You glanced at your foot and saw a _real_ banana peel beneath it. "What the hell?" You stood as if nothing happened, began running, and slipped once more!

And that's when you realized: among these numerous illusions of banana peels on the ground, some were very much real and could make you slip! But, you have no other choice! You must finish the race!

Meanwhile, Nico, who was sitting on the bleachers among the students and still filming everything, noticed that her friend just turned around the corner. 

And he's only about a hundred yards away from the finish line!

"GO, PSYCHO!" Nico howled as she stood and cheered for her friend, making the others look at her in confusion. And she didn't care! It only meant that her invention worked perfectly well! Now, he only has to grab the blue ribbon from the bird statue, and,...

"FFFUUUCCCKKK YYYOOOUUU!" Came in a voice from a distance. Everyone looked and saw you trying to catch up to the guy, your concentration and composure completely lost as you slipped on, yet, another banana peel.

And this even made things a lot wilder and more exciting, making the audience cheer and clap their hands!   
It's the race of the century! The unbeatable Atalanta versus the mysterious random guy!

And they didn't have to wait any longer! The guy easily jumped and took the ribbon from the Griffon statue. He won! He won the race!

You stopped running, trying to catch your breath as you looked at the ground in defeat. You lost, and you have no other choice but to accept the outcome. You lost to someone who isn't even -

"Last time I saw you, you can't even say _shit_."

That voice,...

It sounded familiar! You knew that voice! You knew!

You looked up just in time when the man finally showed you his face.

And you couldn't decide whether to be happy or to get mad at him!

"NERO?!"

Your childhood sweetheart smiled at you as he scratched the back of his head. "Hey, (Y/N)! Thought you forgot about me - OUCH!"

"HOW! DARE! YOU?! WHY DID YOU CHEAT LIKE THAT?!"

Nero chuckled guiltily as he dodged your petty punches. "I did not cheat! I just used my resources to beat the **_Unbeatable Atalanta_**! You’re called that, right?" He exaggerated your stupid title like he was telling a ghost story.

And honestly? You missed that jokester side of him. Hell, you missed everything about him.

You,... missed him so much.

"How did you do that? The illusions?"

"It's called **_Melanion_**." Nico, who just came down from the bleachers, provided the answer. "Ya see, psycho boy here asked me to make him somethin' that would help him win against ya. It's a well - functionin' arm that could project realistic, four - dimensional holograms complete with sound effects, and it's a work of art!"

"An arm?" You questioned and looked down at the metal prosthesis that Nero was wearing. And it looked like he really did lose his right arm. "But, how? How did you - ?"

Those lovely eyes full of concern, that beautiful voice laced with confusion,...

Nero knew what you meant. And he would explain everything to you later when you arrive at Fortuna where the others were waiting for their surprise graduation celebration for you. And after that, _well_ ,...

But, first, he had to do something with those bruises on your knees caused by him and his banana peels,...


End file.
